


Full Beach House

by sunalso



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Children of Characters, Coulson Lives, F/M, Napping, On the beach, Retirement, Slice of Life, Team as Family, post s5 with no s6
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-18
Updated: 2019-05-18
Packaged: 2020-03-07 09:48:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18870757
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunalso/pseuds/sunalso
Summary: AU Post S5. Phil and Melinda enjoy peace, family, and each other in their little corner of paradise.Beta'd by Gort.





	Full Beach House

**Author's Note:**

  * For [agentmmayy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/agentmmayy/gifts).



> Happy birthday to the amazing Ness! She asked for a retired Phil and May, with Daisy with them. Then everyone else showed up. I hope you have an amazing day! :-D

May sipped her mimosa and sighed as a cool breeze off the ocean passed through the house. This was not what she’d thought what her retirement would be like. She smiled ruefully and took a larger drink. She hadn’t thought she’d retire at all, except in a pine box buried six feet deep.

Tahiti was much nicer.

The house she and Phil had easily afforded with their rather large cushion of back and hazard pay, was a sprawling one close to the beach. It wasn’t just any beach. It was their own, private beach.

In the early days, when she’d thought she could lose him at any moment, they’d often take a blanket out there to make love on under the stars. Those days were behind them now, both of worry and having the privacy to screw wherever and whenever they wanted too.

“May,” Daisy said, breezing through the room with one of her two adopted little ones on her hip, “do you know where Phil is?”

May smiled. “He’s on babysitting duty, and I think they’re building sandcastles, did you need something?”

“I’m supposed to help with a test in the lab,” she said with a sheepish grin.

“Are you keeping it from exploding, like last time?” May looked heavenward.

“Er…yes?”

May held out arms. “Come to Nǎinai, Ano.” The little girl, all of six months old, launched herself at May, who easily caught her. The baby giggled as she settled in May’s arms.

Daisy had shown up on their doorstep a year ago with a little boy, Fai, in tow, having promised his mother she’d take care of him. Ano was a more recent, but very welcome, addition to the family. Their ever growing family. First, Hunter and Bobbi had shown up, Bobbi seven months pregnant. Then Fitz and Simmons, their baby less than a month old. Daisy was the latest, and May expected Mack and Elena would retire sooner or later and turn up here as well.

May would never admit it, but she liked having the vast majority of the people she cared about all in one place.

Daisy kissed her daughter and trotted off, radioing the lab to let Fitz-Simmons know she was on her way.

Ano chewed on her fist as May carried her down towards the beach.

Phil looked up as she approached. He had a straw hat and dark sunglasses on and was sprawled in a low beach chair. She’d seen him take on a lot of roles in his life, but doting grandfather was by far the one that suited him best. He looked healthy and happy, both things that made May’s heart dance for joy.

“Is that my baby?” he cooed, catching sight of Ano.

“You better mean the actual baby and not me,” May said, sitting in the chair beside him.

“I like to live dangerously, but not that dangerous.”

Ano babbled something and giggled, her eyes sparkling at Phil. The kids all loved him, and he adored them just as much in return.

“How’s the sandcastle going?” May asked. Phil was sitting under a large beach umbrella and another one provided shade for the two boys who were busy digging in the sand. Beyond them, the Pacific lapped gently at the shore as white clouds sailed through a bright blue sky.

Jeremy Hunter and Fai Johnson were both around four years old and got along like houses on fire. Rose Fitzsimmons, three and a chatterbox, usually played peacefully with them as well, but at the moment she was off to one side with her own castle, talking nonstop to herself.

“Not bad, the boys are destroying as much as their building, and Rosie gave up and went to make her own. I think I smoothed it over. Both sides were a little upset.”

“Were they destroying hers?”

“No, thankfully not.”

May let out a sigh of relief. Parenting was a lot of work. 

Jeremy was making car noises and digging what looked like a track, while Fai got up, a shell in his hand.

“Do you need a drink?” Phil asked, and Fai smiled from under his mop of dark hair and came to get the juice box that Phil retrieved from a cooler.

“What do you say?” May asked as the boy took the apple juice.

“Thank you!” He drank quickly and handed the box back, before going to sit beside Rosie. He gave her the shell, and she pushed into one of her sand towers.

Ano wiggled in May’s lap, and she handed the baby to Phil.

He bounced her on his knee while keeping an eye on his other charges. May scooted closer to him and leaned her head against his shoulder.

“What a beautiful day,” she said, inhaling deeply. Everything always smelled fresh in their little corner of paradise. No exhaust fumes or frying grease. It was a good place to raise children.

Phil dragged a finger along her arm.  He’d produced a set of plastic keys from somewhere that Ano was busily chewing on. Teething was never all that fun.

“Do you ever wish you’d had any?” Phil asked softly. “Maybe you and Andrew? Even after…” He trailed off, but she knew that he meant Bahrain and not the events of Andrew’s death.

“I used to,” she said quietly. Old hurts never died, they just showed up to stab you mercilessly at inopportune times.

“I mean now, more than in the past.”

May laughed. “No, if you mean do I wish I’d done everything differently and been a stay at home PTA mom, then no. And these little ones are as dear to me as any of my own could ever have possibly been.”

“I know that,” he said with a chuckle.

“What about you?”

He was quiet for a moment. “I guess I thought all that would just happen. That I’d get married, have kids. I don’t know how I expected it to, when I was always so busy, or when I thought the job would slow down, but I went from being a twenty-something rookie to here way too fast.”

May made a face. “That’s the truth.” Hadn’t she just joined SHIELD? Where had the years gone?

Ano reached out her arms for May, and she took the baby back, cuddling her against her chest and breathing in the clean scent of baby hair.

Rosie and Fai had abandoned their sandcastle and were heading towards the waves with a bucket, excitedly chatting about crabs. Jeremy rushed after them and was immediately included in the crab hunt. May hoped they all had enough sunscreen on.

Beside her, Phil had his face turned towards them, his eyes hidden behind his sunglasses. She smiled gently. Those sharp eyes, that had shepherded SHIELD through so many pitfalls and had seen the talent in so many agents and shone a light on it, were now watching over the next generation.

Phil let out a soft snore, and his head lolled to the side.

May had to struggle to keep from laughing and waking him. Retirement was good for him.

Standing, she carried Ano down to the waves, dipping the baby’s feet in as she made sure the other children were behaving. Fai and Jeremy were bringing Rosie every tiny shore creature they could, and she was delightedly telling them what kind it was and any other facts she knew, which were quite a lot. The big words sounded adorable in her still slightly lispy voice, though partway through one of the explanations Jeremy dumped water over her head, and she immediately stopped to chase him into the shallows to retaliate with splashing. The three little ones laughed and laughed.

“Don’t go too far,” May said, then turned as she sensed someone behind her. Daisy walked past the still-napping Phil and came to stand beside May. Ano babbled at seeing her mother, and Daisy took her.

“Is Coulson asleep?” Daisy asked.

May rolled her eyes. “Yes. Don’t tell him, but I think he’s getting old.” She knew he wouldn’t have dozed off without her there to watch the babies, but it was still funny.

Daisy’s eyes widened, then narrowed. “Pot, kettle.”

“I could still kick your ass.”

“You wouldn’t hit someone holding a baby.”

May fixed Daisy with a glare. “Hand me Ano first.” To her satisfaction, Daisy quelled a little. May was pleased to know she could still be scary. Relaxing her face, she smiled and patted Daisy’s arm. The kids were continuing to splashing each other but had managed to not stray too far from shore. “I see Fitz-Simmons didn’t blow up their lab.”

“Not yet, it was actually pretty tame compared to last month’s trial. I think Jemma might be pregnant again. Fitz kept stepping in front of her, and she looked like she wanted to strangle him.”

May snorted. “I have no doubt they’ll get that power source working. Hunter and Bobbi have a lot of plans to expand security once they do.” It wan’t that their little corner of paradise wasn’t safe, but once you knew how terrible things could get, you wanted as much protection as possible. It also kept all of them busy.

Daisy waded out a little further, until the water lapped at the hem of her shorts. She used her powers to create a column of water that tickled Ano’s toes. The baby giggled, the sound sweet.

From the path to their cottage, Fitz and Jemma appeared. Rosie shrieked and headed for shore. Fitz ran to scoop her up, but Jemma sat in the shade beside Phil, looking worn out. Definitely pregnant.

Fai came and took May’s hand, pulling her back towards the umbrellas as Hunter and Bobbi showed up, both carrying picnic supplies.

May settled back in her chair, and Phil, sunglasses pushed up, looked ruefully at her. “I wasn’t napping.”

“Of course not,” she said, winking at him. Bobbi set the picnic basket down, and it was swarmed by hungry preschoolers that Hunter shooed away and convinced to sit down. He was magic with the kids. Jemma helped pass out sandwiches and bottles of water, and May felt contentment sink into her bones.

She wouldn’t trade her life for anything. Seeing her growing family relaxed and happy was everything she could have asked for in her retirement. That she was spending it with a man she loved made every day even sweeter.

“Jeremy,” Hunter said, “careful with the sand.”

Fitz sighed. “Rosie, you can eat the sandwich without picking apart every ingredient into a different pile. I promise. Watch me.”

“Fai!” Daisy said, grabbing his leg with one hand while she held a bottle for Ano with the other. “Slow down, or you’ll choke.”

The baby laughed, and milk ran down her chin.

May licked her thumb and swiped the mess off, Phil’s eyes catching hers as she did so. “Mom,” he mouthed.

She grinned as she wiped her fingers on a napkin. She was, and she couldn’t be prouder.

 


End file.
